The number of conflicts in the field in Roraima grew by 50% in 2023, compared to the previous year, according to a report by the Pastoral Land Commission (CPT). Last year, 60 conflicts were recorded due to land and water disputes and those linked to rural slave labor. In 2022, there were 40.
Last year’s 60 conflicts involved 48,500 people, residents of 13 of the State’s 15 municipalities. The report data was released on the 22nd.
Most of the conflicts happened because of land disputes, with 48 cases registered for this reason. Of these, 45 occurred on indigenous lands, with the Yanomami Land, the largest in Brazil, being the most affected.
The other reasons for conflict were rural slave labor, which had nine complaints, and the dispute over water, with two cases. These conflicts occurred on farms, jockeys, farms, rural areas and also on indigenous lands.
Regarding violence against people, four murders and 13 attempted crimes were recorded last year in the state, according to the CPT report. In 2023, indigenous people were the only fatal victims.
One of the victims is a 36-year-old Yanomami indigenous health agent (AIS). He was killed in the Uxiu community, within the Yanomami Indigenous Land, after an attack by miners on the community. In the same year, the Federal Police (PF) arrested a miner suspected of participating in the crime.
Across Brazil, the number of conflicts in the countryside also grew and the country broke a record in 2023, with 2,203 cases. The number represents an increase of 60% compared to 2014, which had the most incidents until then, when 1,339 cases were recorded due to land, water, work and resistance.
The number of murders in the country, however, was the lowest since 2020, when 21 deaths were recorded. In 2023, there were 31 homicides.
The North is the region with the most cases of disputes, representing 35% of occurrences, followed by the Northeast, with 32%. The two states with the most conflicts in the period between 2014 and 2023 belong precisely to these regions: Pará, with 1,999 occurrences, and Maranhão, with 1,926 cases.
The Pastoral Land Commission, linked to the Catholic Church, has organized annual publications on conflicts in the countryside since 1985. Cases understood as actions of resistance and confrontation that take place in different social contexts are recorded. Disputes involve, for example, struggles over land, water, rights and the means of work or production.
